


Woof

by mandaree1



Category: Steven Universe - Fandom
Genre: Everyone has a sucky past, F/F, He lives with Amethyst, Human AU, Implied Sexual Content, Multi, Open Marriage, Polyamory, Rose still died, She's the only one out of college/with a house, The gems are raising him with Greg, everyone is poly, polygems - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-03-27
Updated: 2017-01-27
Packaged: 2018-05-29 13:07:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 8,886
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6375982
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mandaree1/pseuds/mandaree1
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>(Polygems Human!AU) Amethyst is settling into her life as a mom and settling into a relationship when two of her old friends arrive with news; Vidalia is pregnant (again), and Peridot is getting married. Her sister, Jasper, is the one Peridot's marrying. Amethyst has no choice but to return home for the ceremony.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Average day; not so average life.

"Woof."

Pearl doesn't even glance over her shoulder, intent on the paper on her desk. "Did you say something, Amethyst?"

"Hmm? Nah." Amethyst, right arm crooked behind her head, the left draped across her pudgy belly, shakes her head.

"Because I thought I heard you say 'woof.'"

"I did. Just talkin' to myself."

She says 'woof' for lot's of reasons. She feels a bit like a dog with no chain, lounging back on Pearl's dorm bed. She's as confused as a dog in a new home, as she has no reason to be here and yet Pearl had invited her anyway. Also; Pearl's wearing a collar.

It's a very pretty collar, don't get her wrong. Small and black with a tiny pink diamond dangling from the front; a tribute to her old friend and lover, Rose. The kind of thing that's _just_ risque enough that she wouldn't dare wear it outside the dorm for fear of embarrassment but has no issue with wearing it around Amethyst and Garnet. Definitely Garnet.

Okay, okay. Right. Might be a good idea to give a quick rundown for the people in the back; Amethyst met Garnet and Pearl at one of her sister's concerts a couple months back. A couple beers and one private night- which, oddly enough, didn't include sex- later, they're dating. Well, no, not dating. Dating is a personal thing. Amethyst doesn't really do personal.

So, _Garnet and Pearl_ are dating, while she's more like the one 'friend' they call when they're looking for a good time.

Got it? Good.

This whole 'hanging out' thing is new. They have a movie night once a week- which usually gets cancelled due to testing and/or homework, but she understands- and now they invite her over just for kicks? Yeah. It's confusing.

Oh, right. She forgot one other thing; they're raising Rose's kid.

Rose, through some wonder upon wonder, had been friends with all of them long before they met. She was sociable like that. Steven got handed off to Greg, who went to her sister, Jasper, for help, and got referred to Amethyst.

Steven lives with her during the week to be closer to his school. Before you freak out, he's with Greg for the night. She did _not_ leave him alone in a house full of potentially deadly objects. One funeral is enough.

Pearl and Garnet lucked into the occasion later, when they found out their dead best friend's son was living under her roof. Steven spends more time with them than he does with her, these days.

That's fine. She's a crappy mom anyway.

"Whatcha doing?" Amethyst stands on her tip-toes to see over Pearl's shoulder, hands on her waist for support. The woman gives an uncomfortable jerk, so she relocates them to the top of her chair. "One of those research thinga-ma-jigs?"

"Just an essay." Pearl frowns, glancing at her over the top of her chair as the short woman flops back onto the bed, curiosity sated. "What did you say you majored in, again?"

Amethyst never _said_ she majored in anything. Knowing a probe when she hears one, she shrugs. "Survival."

" _Amethyst_."

"Alright, alright, you got me. Babysitting."

Well, if we're being serious here, Amethyst never finished middle school. It's not that she didn't want to- it's just... complicated.

Okay, no, it's not. She kinda-sorta ditched to go on a tour with her sister's band of emo idiots (note that those two words are typically connected- you can be perfectly smart _and_ emo, and vice versa. Jasper's friends are dirt amongst gems, is all.) But it wasn't like she had the money to get books and stuff for herself anyway. Everything she had went towards Steven.

Pearl and Garnet don't know that. In her defense, they never asked.

"You have a career in babysitting?" She asks, voice flat with sarcasm.

"I do odd jobs." Not a lie.

"But, like, as a career." Pearl tries to explain. She shrugs once again.

"I have a _career_ in doing odd jobs."

She opens her mouth to say something- probably to offer her some tutoring to get her back in school- when Garnet opens the door to their shared room, grunting a greeting. Steven skips in beside her. "Amethyst!"

"Hey, there's my little dude!" She sits up, watching with a wide smile as he flops down next to her. Garnet shrugs off her backpack. "I thought you were hanging out with Greg?"

"I was!" He jerks his arms into the air, eyes bright. He's still at _that_ stage of growing up, where his parents are perfect and beautiful, and Amethyst is really gonna rue the day he realizes she's neither. Pretty, yes, but beautiful? Girls like Pearl and Garnet are beautiful. Not her. "Garnet came over and helped me with my homework."

"Thought Pearl would want some time with him. I was gonna drop 'em off after." Garnet hums, sitting down. "Didn't know you were here. Hey."

"Hey." She lazily raises a hand. "I can leave, if you want."

"No, no. I'm happy you're with us."

Amethyst narrows her eyes. Flattery! She didn't need no flattery. "Thanks for helping him. I stink at math." She says instead. Causing a scene might make Steven cry, and she hates when she does that.

Pearl ditches the essay to spin her office chair around and open her arms. Steven gladly accepts a hug from her. "Oh my gosh!" He squeals. "You necklace is so pretty!"

Amethyst stifles a snort when the girl's pale skin turned a deep shade of tomato. "Er, thanks. I like it too."

"You look good." Garnet agrees. "You ever wear jewelry, Amethyst?"

"Don't own any."

"I do!" Steven digs through his pockets and pulls out an old silver ring with intricate engravings of vines. A family heirloom, now covered in sticky candy and marker. It's a good thing Amethyst never cared about most of her family. "Amethyst says I can dress up whenever I want!"

"Good." The tall woman nods. "If it makes you happy, you should do it."

Amethyst relaxes. Garnet's words tell her she's doing at least semi-decent on the whole 'mom' thing.

...Then again, Garnet was raised by two midgets; one of whom was a professional brawler, while yet another was a registered psychic (you can actually get registered for that. Who knew?). Pearl's parents treated her like a servant. And her mom...

Well, let's just say none of them are stunning examples of parenting done right, not counting Garnet. She should probably look to, like, the internet, or something.

Amethyst closes her eyes and lets out a sigh.

This is good. Life is good.

 


	2. Everything’s fine and nothing hurts- once you get through all of the pain and misery.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Much like comic book superheroes, everyone has a cruddy past, including- but not limited to- neglect, starvation, abandonment, alcohol and allusions to sex. Also a smidge of slavery. Not a happy chapter.

Okay, okay, settle down. Amethyst gets what you're saying; a good story is nothing without context.

Fine, then. Have some context. _Lots_ of context.

* * *

 

Amethyst only remembers being inside her mother's house a handful of times, each of those times which was for their own reason; a policeman was taking a look around the area, she made the news and is suddenly the talk of the town, so on and so forth.

Of course, she couldn't really tell you anything _about_ the house. It was a dirty white two-story, with peeling paint. She had slept in the cold, wet basement. She doesn't really know what her mother looked like, either, 'cause she only looked her in the face a handful of times, smaller than the handful of nights in the basement.

No, Amethyst and her mother had led separate lives from the start.

She lived in the doghouse in the backyard.

That sounds bad, but she has many a decent memory of that doghouse. She wasn't ever that big, so she could stretch out. It was a roof over her head, technically. It's better than the basement. A place she could be alone when times got tough. She has her fair share of memories playing on the dying grass in the backyard, rolling and jumping around.

It leaked when it rained, and was cold when it snowed, but it was home, you know? A lack of blankets and plumbing didn't make it any less so.

The first time she ever remembers being confronted by it was when a couple of idiots chucked some rocks at her head. No one ever even said anything about her grubby appearance; they all took her as the type to roll in mud and plaster her clothes with dirt, so they assumed as much.

They assumed a lot of things.

She scrambles over to the fence to snarl them, running on all fours- she's _five,_  cut her some slack- but two beefy hands have already grabbed them by their shirt collars.

"Get out of here, you morons!" She shoves them away. "It's not worth the trouble."

The woman- teen, really, but she's _huge_ \- turns to her. Orange stripes are tattooed across her body and face, and her nose, obviously broken on numerous occasions, is pointed in the strangest of ways.

Amethyst later comes to know her as Jasper, her older sister, who left when she was six to crash at her friends houses'. Jasper's like that; she's a jerk, and yet no one complains when she pops downstairs wearing a towel and asking about waffles. She has something Amethyst just doesn't have.

"Are you really gonna live like this?" She demands, baring her teeth. The gesture is a familiar one to her. "With _her_?"

Amethyst bares her own teeth in a growl, unsure of what to say to that. Jasper turns and walks away.

She calls those years the kindergarten years, despite having lived that way until she was ten, simply because she meets the first person who knows and helps her on her third day of school.

Namely; Peridot.

Peridot's just fun to look at. She wears pumps- yes, the horror pumps of the eighties, complete with glitter- almost as big as her to feel taller, and her glasses are thick and resemble goggles, with a paint smudge on the crown she later equips as her trademark.

Correction; Peridot's just _fun_ , plain and simple.

Amethyst inspires her to roll in the mud and stick her tongue out when teacher's look away. To rough house and laugh. To be anything _but_ perfect.

In return, Peridot sneaks her food. On more than one occasion she's found a sandwich stuck in her cubbyhole; stolen or snuck out of the pantry, it depends on the day. Amethyst, who has more than a few scars from fights that have taken a turn on the playground in hopes of winning a kid's lunchbox, has no knowledge of how to share, and gulps it all down. Peridot seems to find that amusing, intriguing, and horrifying all at once, and is often torn between laughter and horror as she watches her go.

It's not like she can impose, however. Peridot's mother is complicated in ways her own is not, and she knows the answer is no if she ever asked to stay.

Sometimes, on weekends, she'll swing by with food, but most days she's left until Monday without anything to fill her belly. Once or twice, she grabs a handful of old dogfood from the bag her mother never got around to throwing it away, but it just makes her sick.

Amethyst is coming upon her eleventh birthday when she wakes up in the middle of nowhere with a splitting headache.

Her mother had left her chained to a tree.

She pulls the chain off eventually, leaving her neck raw and red. There's nothing to eat nearby. She doesn't know how her mother expected her to have survive, _if_ she expected her to survive.

It began to drizzle. It's not a warm rain. Amethyst starts walking.

She goes straight to Peridot's house, shivering with cold, her legs splattered with mud. She accepts her inside immediately, looking on the verge of tears herself.

"Oh, Amethyst." She chokes out, half-carrying her towards the bathroom. "I'm so sorry."

She'd moved out in the middle of the night, but not before knocking her unconscious and dragging her into the woods behind their house.

The only thing she took with her? The doghouse.

The police say things like 'kidnapping' and 'being forced to go off the grid.' None of them say what they're thinking. None of them say 'abandoned.'

She sleeps in the patch of dirt that once housed her world that night. No one tries to stop- or help- her. The next morning, a woman is by her side.

"This place sucks." She rumbles. She's sitting on her knees, starting at the empty house. Amethyst stares with her.

"What do _you_ know about it?"

"Plenty." She grunts, almost conversationally. "I'm her daughter too, after all."

There's a pause. She wipes her sleepy eyes with her gritty arm. "She never told me I had a sister." She isn't, for some reason, shocked by this news. She's just numb.

She snorts. "She's never told anyone much of anything. I'm Jasper."

"Amethyst." She twiddles her thumbs. "I'm the reason dad left. Mom said so. I'm sorry."

"Then I'm the reason dad married mom in the first place." She retorts, patting her back. The force of it almost knocks her over. "We're both mistakes, and so what? We got every right to be here." She nods to her chest. "You gotta stain right there."

Amethyst self-consciously rubs her thumb over the splotch of pale skin. It's as big as her palm, lumpy and uneven at the edges. "It's a birthmark." She's got another one exactly like it to the left of the small of her back.

Jasper doesn't answer. "My band and I are leaving this stupid town. You should come with." She says finally, standing up. "You don't got anywhere else to go, after all."

Amethyst stares at her. "Okay."

* * *

 

They travel from state to state in a cruddy van. It kind of sucks, as her only travel companions threw rocks at her as a child.

They threaten to toss her out onto the road, once. She threatens to put them in the hospital. Jasper, in the front seat, driving, laughs. "I like you." She says. "We're definitely related."

She's officially 'in.'

Of course, her sister isn't always fun, either. They're both a bit reckless, with little fear of bodily harm. They pick fights that are quickly backed up with fists. Jasper goes on stage looking like she got chewed on by a wolverine; Amethyst sulks in the back of the van, cheek swelling. Her whole body is bruised, but her sister is no better; they'd both realized early on that there was no 'alpha' fighter between them.

It's one of those days when she meets Vidalia, whom hands her a can of beer to press against her cheek. "I don't drink." She hums, patting her bulging belly. "But there's good karma in a happy toast."

They clink cans. The woman sets hers aside. "My friend usually comes on after them." She jerks her chin at Jasper, rocking out. "I think they're friends?"

"Maybe." She mumbles, gaze lowering. "I wouldn't know."

"Is she your kin?"

"My sister."

"Ah. I can see the resemblance."

"Yeah, me too. Unfortunately."

Vidalia snorts. "I like you."

"Thanks."

Greg is her friend's name. He comes to get her after he's done; he and Jasper were both just opening gigs.

"We're heading the same places." He tells Jasper. "So I'll follow you, if you don't mind."

"Whatever." She grunts, tugging on her arm. "Come'on, runt. Time for grub."

* * *

 

"You don't look like the concert types." Amethysts finds herself saying, years later, shouting to be heard over the music. In her hands is a red solo cup.

The shorter of the two smiles at her thinly. "Neither do you."

She shrugs. "Eh. Felt like doin' something new. Get away for a bit." She doesn't mention that 'away' is the hotel down the street, and the band playing is her sister's. Tonight, all she wants is to get so drunk she wakes up in some alleyway.

"Same." The taller woman growls. Amethyst takes a second to admire her wide hips. Vidalia had told her once that big women with hips were considered attractive, back in the day, because it meant you were well-fed and rich. (Also, a good baby maker, but those were different times.) The tall woman easily fits the bill, at least in that perspective. The other one is literally a stick. Not that that is a bad thing. People are what people are. "Had a bad week."

"Haven't we all?" The thin woman murmurs, eyes dark. Her head piece sweeps across her forehead, a pretty white jewel in the center.

"I know that feel, bruh." She comments. What none of them realize is that they're mourning the same woman. "'S been one of those days."

They all pause, awkwardly. Amethyst stops to wonder if coming on to them was a smart idea in the first place. They don't seem to mind, though; she's not the only one in search of company.

"'M Garnet." The tall woman nods to her chest. "I like your mark."

"Amethyst." She's both happy and irritated that everyone seems to notice that stupid splotch about her first. "Everyone seems to think it's a tattoo."

Garnet snorts and hands the other girl her drink. She holds out her palms, fingers outstretched, so she can see the ruby and sapphire gems tattooed across them. She later finds out they're in honor of both her mothers. "I _know_ tattoos."

Amethyst nods her approval. "Nice."

"I'm Pearl." The third woman bursts in awkwardly. "Would you, um... like to dance?"

She smiles toothily, a habit born out of her childhood that had never went away, warmth bubbling up in her belly. "What good is music without dancing?"

Pearl dances like she's in a movie, while Amethyst is freeform at its best. They clash and bump, but the rhythm is certainly there. Garnet dances the way she does, only with a touch of elegance. Together, they're in perfect sync.

Amethyst, well, she's _not_. She's at the edges, clinging to a fame that isn't there.

Even still, she manages to get them into her hotel room, so there's a victory there.

Garnet holds Pearl up with a gentle hold. Amethyst cups her face while they make out. She's ready for a long night, placing her hands around Pearl's waist.

She shudders and pulls away. "Wait."

Amethyst immediately jerks her hands away. Pearl looks equal parts guilty and certain.

"I just... we don't know you, you know?"

She nods, eyes dark. "S' cool. I'll be right back."

She disappears into the bathroom, eyes welling up. She silently wipes them away, swallowing frustration. It was stupid of her to think she could possibly fit into their relationship, if only for one night.

Amethyst shakes the hurt away- it's her right; it's her body- and steps back into the room. Pearl and Garnet are engaged in a quiet conversation.

Blue eyes light up as she steps into the dim lighting of the hotel lamps. "I thought you were going to leave." Pearl admits.

Amethyst stops mid-step. "I can, if you want."

"We like you." Garnet rumbles. Her arms are still around Pearl's waist. "Stay."

The short woman gingerly crawls onto the bed and flops down, facing the wall. Pearl wraps her arms around her waist with a sigh. Amethyst self-consciously turns over and curls closer. She feels like she's ten again, and sleeping in Peri's bed; uncertain of the big walls around her and the unfamiliar feeling of human body warmth.

"I'm sorry." Pearl says. "But also not."

"Don't be. I get it. Sex is supposed to be fun; it's hard to have fun with a complete stranger on a night like tonight."

Pearl relaxes in her arms. Garnet hums agreement and runs her fingers through Amethyst's long hair.

"I'd like to." She confesses. "Know you, I mean."

"Shoot." She replies, although, deep down, she doesn't know if Pearl and Garnet will like what they find.

"Why were you at a trashy concert?"

"Same as you. Also, my sister was playing."

She hears a deep note of surprise. "You're related to that behemoth?"

"I'm short for my family. Heck, I'm just short."

"You travelin' with 'em?"

"I was." Amethyst says, surprising herself "But I've been looking for a place to stay."

"Sorry." Pearl mumbles. "I'd give you a room, but we live in a dorm."

She snorts. "Nah." Of all the places she was planning on settling, tiny little Beach City wasn't it. "I'll find something."

* * *

 

They buy her a house. 'They', meaning the band, who are all more than willing to chip in, if it gets rid of her.

It's a dingy thing. Two stories tall, with white paint. She feels that urge to slam her fist into something she gets when she remembers that place.

Jasper stomps up, carrying Steven. The toddler wriggles in her arms. "I'm gonna drop it. _Take_ him."

Her sister pushes him into her arms. Jasper's hands, she notices, are easily big enough to crush his head. Amethyst's hands, small and chubby, can barely circle his waist.

"I'm gonna paint." She decides with a flourish. "As soon as I got the cash. I _hate_ the color white."

Steven cheers. "Purple!"

"Okay." She nods her head with a comfortable sigh. "We'll paint it purple."

* * *

 

In the end, she supposes, they still don't know her.

She knows all about them. How Pearl is the middle of three (triplets); how their parents raised them more like servants. How teachers would call home, showing concern that they were _too_ well behaved, that they were like dolls, that something was wrong. How she was eventually rented off as a form of bodyguard, schooled in basic firearms. How Rose, her lover for many years, literally _bought_ her freedom. How her parents hugged her and wished her a happy life, despite all that, because their views were twisted and strange.

Her two sisters, Blue and Yellow (nicknamed Blu and Yi to give them a bit of originality all their own) still lived with them, as far as Pearl knew.

Garnet's moms were a bit out of the box, as well. Ruby was quick to teach her how to fight, whereas Sapphire, predicting a life of many battles ahead of her, showed her compassion and levelheadedness. Her mother was the real deal, inspiring respect for the supernatural from a young age. Ruby taught her how to never stop fighting.

They know she's related to Jasper and is helping raise Steven. At the end of the day, that's all.

In her defense, once again, they never asked.


	3. Everyone shows up at exactly the wrong time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Old buddies come by to tell the good news.

It feels good to get that off her chest.

Context is context, but Amethyst isn't oblivious enough to believe she unloaded all of that _just_ to help the story along. She likes not being the only person in the room who sees her damage. For others to know she's done some stupid things, but had a reason for every single one of those stupid things.

Nevertheless, some things just aren't meant to be bragged about.

Garnet drives them home after dinner, Pearl humming an idle tune beside her in the front seat. Steven's conked out in her lap. Amethyst runs her fingers through his hair distractedly while staring out the window.

Pearl and Garnet are practically a married couple, and on days like today, she honestly wonders why they keep her around. Steven, most likely. Once he was old enough, she'd probably be on her own all over again.

Maybe she'd go on a tour with her sister. Maybe she'd lay around and cry. It's a big world, filled with endless possibilities. And ice cream. Ice cream is a thing in both realities.

"Didn't know you were havin' company." Garnet comments. A puke green car is parked in her driveway, flanking a black van.

Amethyst nonchalantly shrugs. Her friends tend to come and go when they pleased. It'd been a while since they last showed; she's probably overdue. "Didn't know I was _having_ company."

She nudges Steven awake. "Come on, little man. We're home."

Amethyst kicks open the door and pulls the drowsy boy out. She's fairly sure it's against physics for her to be able to pick him up like this, but screw physics.

"I don't believe we've met any of your friends." Pearl says.

"You haven't." She says. "Want to?"

Garnet kills the engine. "Sure."

"Cool. Want me to introduce you as my pals or my dates?"

"Whichever one." They exit and close their doors behind them accordingly. "They're _your_ friends. You know them best."

"No kiddin'." Amethyst muses, leading them up the drive of her little purple house. It'd taken some convincing on her end, but Steven had eventually shunned neon for a simple lavender.

It's better than white.

Amethyst doesn't even blink when she reaches the door, only to find it cracked open. "They must've picked the lock."

Pearl frowns. "Isn't that damaging?"

"Probably. I'll buy a new one later."

Amethyst crashes open the door and lets out a bellow. "If there's some squatters in there eating _my_ breakfast waffles, there'll be heck to pay!"

Vidalia pokes her head around the corner, eyes narrowed. "You have waffles? Dude, sharing is caring."

She smiles and rushes over, arms open for a hug. "Nah, they're Steven's." She practically sweeps the girl off the floor, taking notice of the pudge in her belly section. "It's nice to see you, V."

"I'd just like to say that I was put up to this." Peridot poked her head into the room nervously. The sight of her childhood friend makes Amethyst's heart warm.

"Hey!" She actually _does_ lift the girl off the floor for this one. "Nice to see ya', buddy! What took you so long to pop by?"

"Work." She states, flatly. Her face reddens, and her eyes dart away. "And other things."

Amethyst presses their foreheads together before letting go. "More on that later. I want _all_ the details."

"Of course."

Pearl clears her throat. Steven, perched in Garnet's arms now, waves enthusiastically.

"Oh. Right. Sorry." Amethyst jerks her thumb in their direction. "These are the women I'm currently making out with on a weekly basis."

" _Amethyst_!"

She shrugged, a cheesy grin on her face. "Hey, you told me to do it my way."

"Steven? Dude, you've grown." Vidalia gently took the boy from Garnet's arms.

"You know me?"

"Yup. I got to hold you once, when you were tiny. Like, really tiny. I doubt you remember me." She smiled at him. "You got _big_."

Steven grins at that. "Amethyst says that being big is good, as long as it's not unhealthy."

"Definitely." She shot the young woman an amused look. "Not that Amethyst has room to talk."

Pearl sticks out her hand. "I'm Pearl, and this is Garnet."

"Vidalia. That's Peridot." She confidently shook it, but not before sending her a look. "It's always gemstones, ain't it, Amethyst?"

Peridot gazed up at them evenly, no doubt sizing the girls up. Amethyst felt a prick of equal parts irritation and happiness at her friend's protective streak. They'd dated, once, and it showed. She'd never been ashamed of that.

"Hello. It's nice to meet you." She eventually dips her head.

"Same here." Garnet rumbles.

Vidalia diffuses the moment, hand on her hip. "You got any grub?"

* * *

 

Amethyst has never been a good cook. It's not that she sucks at it; everyone has their likes and dislikes, however, and she tends to forget that. Amethyst loves everything about food.

Still, she knows all there is to know about her friends- mostly from trial and error- so she's pretty confident as she flings herself into Vidalia's lap after handing out plates and snacks.

Pearl's lips tighten. She wonders, belatedly, if the woman was jealous. But of what? No one had even given Garnet a second glance.

Maybe that was it. Maybe she thought the woman deserved more appreciation.

Vidalia laughs and runs her fingers through her long hair. "You're snuggly tonight."

Amethyst hums and presses her head to the new pudge. "Just waitin' for the announcement."

"What announcement?" She raised an eyebrow innocently.

"Dude," She says, mock-serious. "I helped you with the first one. Didja think I'd forget how you looked with a baby in your belly?"

Vidalia let out an exasperated laugh. " _Dangit_ , Amethyst, you knew the moment you saw me, didn't you?"

She smirks up at her. "Yup."

"Oh." Pearl's checks tinge red, although Amethyst couldn't tell you why they did. "Well, uh, congratulations."

"Thanks." The woman nudges her. "Ready to be an aunt all over again?"

"Ready as I'll ever be." Amethyst bumps Peridot's knee with her foot. "Alright, your turn. You've been dying to say something all night."

"Well, um..." Peridot clears her throat, face bright with embarrassment. Her eyes shine with pride, however. "I'm getting married."

She blinked at her, floored. Truth be told, she'd always thought that thing with her sister was a sort of rebound after they decided to stay friends. Peridot had been the one to end things, but that didn't mean squat. Also, she'd never considered Jasper the type to get married. She wasn't sure the woman knew the word, really. "You're marrying my sister? What are you, nuts?"

"She may be a pain." She hums. "But she's _my_ pain." Peridot smirks at her. "We'll really be sisters, now."

Amethyst never doubted that they were.

"Omigosh!" Steven squeals. "Wedding!"

"Everyone's invited." She assured him. "The more, the merrier." Which, of course, meant that their guest list was painfully short as the moment.

Amethyst groans and flops dramatically. She's never gone to a wedding before, but she'd never wanted to, either. "I have no choice, do I?"

"It's your friend and your sister, Amethyst." Pearl says. "So, I'm guessing, no."

"It _would_ be kinda rude." Garnet agrees, smiling.

"Ulgh. Fine. But only if I get to wear a suit. I don't _do_ lace and frills."


	4. It's not her fault she's slept with everyone she loves, besides Steven- it's the easiest way to keep them around.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Amethyst was Peridot's first; that special brand of jealousy mixes strangely with sisterly affection.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sexual innuendos out the ears, everybody.

Peridot had known she wasn't Amethyst's first when they slept together, but there was something about the way she stayed glued to her side that bespoke of a special jealousy a first had, and a sort of protectiveness siblings do- or, at the very least, are supposed to- have, to some degree or another.

Amethyst, well, she gets it. There had been something almost disappointing about how how quick her first had been to leave in the wee hours of the morning, even if they had been a one night stand. (She remembers, vaguely, getting into a fight with Jasper when she found out they had been sleeping with them as well. Jasper had beat the living heck out of her- she'd been young, and new to fighting over not-food things- and then they'd gotten ice cream. They never brought it up again.)

Anyway, what she's trying to say is, she understands Peridot's motives. She knows she's just trying to make sure she'll be happy. But, for the love of every god and goddess in existence, in every religion, would it _kill_ her not to do this in front of Steven? They have an example to set, here.

Thankfully, this sort of stuff seems to fly over Steven's head. It's not ignorance- Amethyst is the first to admit she gave him the sex talk, once he was old enough to understand what he was asking, and she'd have to be blind and deaf _and_ suck at sign language and/or braille not to see his crush on the library assistant girl who takes weapon lessons from Pearl. To be honest, she's certain it just doesn't interest him. Sexual intimacy, she means. Now, that could just be his age, or it could be he's asexual, or both. Maybe it's neither. She doesn't really care. If he's happy- _that's_ what she cares about.

"Chill, P-dot." Vidalia- another one of her lays, ironically; she'd been happy to be a rebound, post-first pregnancy- says finally, setting a hand on her knee. "Your spazzing is stressin' me out. Stress ain't good for a pregnant lady."

Peridot flushes and falls silent.

Amethyst takes pity on the girl and wraps her arm around her shoulders. "Speaking of stress, how the heck did you manage to get my sister to agree to a wedding?"

The girl shrugs, looking decidedly pleased with herself. "I informed her I wanted one, and she agreed. But only on the condition that you went."

"Ah." She gets it now. "I see how it is. If _she_ has to be miserable, _I_ have to be miserable."

"More or less, yes." Peridot sheepishly admits.

"Sheesh. You're lucky it's your big day, or I might just slug her."

"I should certainly hope not." Pearl warns sternly, long fingers gracefully interlocking around a cup of tea, still steaming.

"Okay, okay. I'll put on my big girl briefs and be the better person, or whatever. Just keep me outta a dress and we're golden."

"Ooh, ooh!" Steven tugs on her arm, eyes bright with excitement. "Can I wear it? We're really close in size, so it should fit, as long as I get a belt, right?"

"Good idea. Can he?" Amethyst turns to Peridot, one hand ruffling the boy's hair.

"Well, I don't see why not." She splutters finally, with joyous surprise. "If he wants to wear it, then have at it."

"Hey, you didn't tell me Steven liked pretty stuff." Vidalia winks at him. "I gotta bunch of costume jewelry and makeup at my place. You should drop by sometime."

"Oh my gosh yes!" He cheers, starry-eyed. "Maybe she'll have some of those pretty necklaces you like, Pearl!"

Pearl blushes a dark red and reaches up to touch her neck, relieved and disappointed by the bare stretch of skin there. "Perhaps."

Garnet hums in contentment. "More 'n likely that she'll have those pretty rings _you_ like, Steven."

"Pretty necklaces and pretty rings, I got 'em all." Vidalia leans back a bit. "Hey, Amethyst? Hate to be a bother, but I don't have a hotel booked. This was a kinda spur of the moment thing. Figured Peri needed some backup to not chicken out."

Peridot gave the woman a dirty look, then averted her gaze. "I wouldn't have 'chickened out.' I merely would have sent her an email at a later date."

"Hey, whatever works." The older woman shrugged nonchalantly. "Anyway. Can I stay over?"

"Sure. I gotta air mattress in the back. You can have my bed."

Vidalia opens her mouth to argue, then snaps it shut with a reluctant nod.

"Sorry I don't got enough room for every body." She tilted her head downwards in a guilty manner as she helped the two women off the couch. "Thanks for the ride home."

"S' no big deal." Garnet says with a smile. "We'll swing by tomorrow to get dates and such."

"Right." Amethyst says, bile rising in her throat. She isn't sure where the wedding is, but she can guess, considering they all grew up in the same town. "Dates."

Both women bend down to say goodnight and give Steven a quick kiss before reluctantly departing for their van.

They really love him, she finds herself thinking. Enough so, at least, to give her a chance. She's glad. Steven deserves to be loved by _everybody._

She gently picks the boy up. His eyes are drooping. "It's past someone's bedtime." She murmurs.

"Amethyst?"

"Yeah?"

"Will the dress look pretty on me?"

"Definitely." Amethyst marches back inside, supporting him more with her arms than with her hip. "Peridot's got good taste in clothing. She just doesn't normally mess with it on the day-to-day."

Steven gave a sleepy trill of happiness. "Amethyst?"

"What?"

"Will Peridot and Jasper be happy together?"

She quietly clunked up the stairs. "We'll see."

* * *

 

Peridot curls up in her arms like a cat. It's far from a romantic gesture; Amethyst can vividly recall practically gluing herself to the woman's side when they were young, shivering with cold and hunger, and wonders if this is karma's way of smacking her upside the head for being a jerk. She probably deserves it.

"You were kinda rude earlier." Amethyst mumbles, nudging her. "Pearl and Garnet are really freaking awesome."

Peridot sighs. "I know."

"You should trust my judgement."

"I know."

"I should really get some better judgement."

"I _know_."

Amethyst gave a sleepy chuckle. "You know, you're an engaged woman now. What's your to-be gonna say when she hears about all of this?"

"She'll ask if I got any." Peridot replies, voice flat. "And then she'll say it was my loss if I didn't."

"Yup." She pops the end of the word. "That sounds like Jasper. Does it bother you?"

"What, that Jasper is so flippant about sex? Not really. You can love someone and not be satisfied with them in the bedroom." Amethyst feels more than sees her shrugging. "To be honest, she's a bit less vanilla than is to my tastes. It's just easier this way."

"True that." She cards fingers through the woman's hair. "But don't sell yourself short. You're really freaky when you wanna be."

"One more word and I'll eviscerate you."

"See?"

A small hand batted at her shoulder. "Why do I love you?"

"Because you're stuck with me. Also, you're marrying my sister. It makes things easier this way."

"Jealous?" She sounded almost hopeful, but more in a way of ego assurance than longing.

"Of Jasper? Nah. I'm glad I settled down here. Beach City's pretty nice, and the people are fun." A pause. "Not to mention I came to your house in the middle of the night with a dog chain around my neck, and you _still_ let me in. You can't up that."

Peridot groans. "Don't remind me of that day. I thought you were gonna fall asleep and never wake up, like in the movies."

Amethyst buries her head in the crook of her neck. "Yeah," She says. "Me too."

A thumb gently brushed her birthmark. "I wish more people had one of these. They're such an interesting texture; fun to play with."

"But not to eat, huh?" Amethyst smirks. Peridot lets out a vague noise of disgust.

"Your partners would kill me."

"No, _I_ would kill you. Steven's way too young to see his mom going at it, you know?"

Peridot's nose wrinkles. "Gross."

"'Xactly. Maybe some other time. You know, if Pearl and Garnet are into that open relationship sort of thing. We've never really talked about it."

She snorts and fall silent. Amethyst starts to doze.

"Do you remember how we used to dance?"

Amethyst blinks sluggishly. "Yeah. You're really bad at it."

Another swat. "You were giving me lessons. I wasn't going to _start out_ good. But, that feeling when we got really into it? Just kinda... there? And happy to be there?"

"Mmhmmm." She also remembered almost dropping her mid-dip when the words, "I'm dumping you." had slipped out of Peridot's mouth.

("We're good for each other, just not _together_ , you know?"

"...Yeah. I know.")

"That's how Jasper makes me feel. Like, all the time. And that's what love is, right?"

The memory, of all things, of quietly curling up with Pearl and Garnet comes to mind, listening to them slowly fall asleep, her own eyes drooping. Steven had been smushed between them all, snoring happily. "Maybe? I dunno. I'm the last person to ask about stuff like love."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Amethyst's first WAS nonbinary, thanks for noticing. =) (Didn't want y'all to think I was just trying to make it vague)


	5. I promise- the couch won't kill me. I hope.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Amethyst is snappish and Pearl is slightly jealous.

Steven squirmed in protest, eyes squeezed shut. His hands scrambled for purchase. "Noooo! Amethyst, stop it!"

Smirking, Amethyst blew a raspberry into his belly triumphantly. "And that's what you get, tryin' to tickle me while I'm napping!"

"Garnet, help me!" Steven cries, pushing her head away.

"Amethyst, no raspberries."

"Aww." She whined, but pulled back to her side of the back seat. Pearl had, as always, called shotgun, and Garnet was driving. They'd taken turns, letting the other nap on the way.

Amethyst doesn't- legally- have a driver's license. But she totally does know how to drive. She could pick up the slack, if they just let her have a go. But they kept fretting over dumb stuff, like laws and cops.

"And, Steven, no tickling Amethyst."

"Aww."

She leaned against the door. "Come'on, G. Where's the fun in a road trip if we can't drive each other nuts?"

"Road trips aren't supposed to be fun. They're supposed to get you places." A pause. "Also, that pun was horrible."

"Man, I'd really hate to do a cross-country thing with you."

"Ditto."

Pearl turned a pretty blue eye at her from the front. "I'm surprised we're staying at a hotel for this. Why not your family home?"

"Would _you_ stay home if _your_ sis was getting married?"

"Touche." She admits. "But my situation is different than yours."

 _You don't know my 'situation.'_ She thought. "V's gonna need a nursemaid, and she's too cheap to rent a room alone. She'd pull a Greg and use her car. That better?"

"Sleeping in the car is fun!" Is Steven's input.

"In a _van_ , yeah. But Vidalia's car in a cramped one, with seats all the way to the trunk."

"Oh. That's not so fun."

"Yeah."

"What about her other child?"

"Who, SC?" Amethyst was the first one to hold little dude. "He's staying with friends."

"Yes, but couldn't _he_ help?"

"Maybe, but I got this. I helped out the first time, after all."

Steven's eyes light up. "Can I help?"

"Sure. If she's cool with it."

"Yay!"

"Don't get _too_ excited." Pearl warns. "We're here for a wedding, not a birth."

There's something about the way she says that, as though both are bad options, that make her hackles rise. "Hey, we never _had_ to come. Peri woulda understood if we skipped it."

Pearl's lip tighten. "She's your... friend." She said the word with a weird sort of tone.

"And Jasper's my sister. So what? We duke it out, then go get some dinner. Done and over with. Peridot's gonna have enough video and pictures taken it'll be exactly like I was there, only I can suffer from the comfort of my couch."

Garnet glances up at her from the review mirror. "You have a funny way 'a showing you care."

"I don't have to go to her stinking wedding to show I care. I do that plenty already." Deep down, however, the barb struck. Garnet thought she didn't care.

Garnet hums and falls silent. Amethyst wonders what's going on behind her shades.

A tugging on her arms stops her from retorting. Steven's holding onto her, eyes watering just a little bit.

"Amethyst..." _Are you guys gonna fight?_ , looks to be on the tip of his tongue.

Well, crap. Now she feels even worse.

She ruffles his hair. "Go to sleep, dude. We got a long ways to go yet."

* * *

The hotel room is a two bedroom, with a small bathroom and living room type areas. Everything's carpet, and the couch- a pull-out mattress- is worn and thin. Amethyst calls it immediately.

"But-"

"Vidalia, I'm not letting you within ten feet of that thing when it's unfolded. Knowing our luck it'll snap back on itself."

She isn't sure how they split the two beds, but she gets the idea that Steven was very comfortably squished between two beautiful women. Lucky boy.

Of course, she was far more used to sleeping alone than she was with others, but Amethyst didn't mention that. Garnet and Pearl both already seemed to consider her selfish. No need to make it sound like she enjoyed her own company too much as well.

She tossed and turned, fighting the urge to switch on the TV and maybe wake someone up (V's a very light sleeper), before finally falling asleep.

Small hands shook her awake only a few hours later, however. "Amethyst?"

Amethyst propped herself up. She only slept in her bra and boxers (unless, of course, he had a nightmare, or they had company; that was just weird), but he knew that already, so no worries about scarring. "Whassup?"

Steven, clad in his yellow pajamas, blankie, and stuffed animal, fiddled with his hands, wringing them in a way that reminded her of Pearl. "The couch isn't going to snap back on you, is it?" He probes hesitantly.

"Hmm?" She yawned. "Probably not."

"But what if it does?" His voice squeaked. Amethyst knew a lost cause when she saw one.

"Alright, alright." She slipped out from under the covers, not the slightest bit ashamed of herself. Why should she be? It was a sports bra; everything was covered. "I'll roll it up and sleep on the cushions."

"Can I stay with you?" He hugged his bear closer. "It's crowded in there."

"Sure."

So they lay half-propped in the darkness, the unfamiliar hotel walls are almost suffocating.

"Amethyst?"

"What?"

"Are you okay? You've been mad ever since we left."

She breathes out a long sigh. "'M not mad. I just don't like this place."

"But... it's your home, isn't it?"

Amethyst pulled the covers up higher. "Home is Beach City. Our nice little purple home. _Not_ this place."

"Oh." He paused. "Well, it's only for a few days."

"Yup." She rolled over. "Can't wait to be gone."

She hears a sigh. "Good night, Amethyst."

"G'night, Steven. And, hey. Don't worry about it."


	6. Dress-Up

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cursing, vague mentions of sex

It's not like all of Amethyst's hometown is a cesspool of chaos and villainy. That would just be silly.

The problem isn't the people in it, per say, so much as the size is. It's small. People know each other. People talk.

So it's only natural that Amethyst would sink down in her seat- passenger front, for once. Pearl wanted a crack at bonding with Steven via cramped seating- and warily scan the old bar, the gun store, the library, not necessarily in that order or that close. It's hard to get past the stark reminder that so many folks had seen her half-starved in the front yard and nobody had done anything about it. She probably never will.

"That's not good for your back," Pearl chided. "Nor does it look comfortable."

"No kiddin'."

"Hey, Amethyst?" Steven's head poked out from between the seats. "Do you think the outfits will look nice?"

"Knowing Peri, they're probably disco rejects." She shrugged. "I'd prepare for the worst, if I were you."

The dress shop is one of the few decently-sized places in this trash heap. If there's anything the locals _can_ do properly, it's throw a wedding. Amethyst knows, from Peridot, that the illustrious Ms. Diamond owns the place- though she wouldn't really call the lady's kind of fashion _style_.

Ms. Diamond is only the first of three siblings, with her one sister running a zoo and the other- well, Amethyst doesn't know what that one does. The zoo owner is said to be an imposing but sad creature, running the business out of remembrance for their fourth sister, who's been dead for many years. Nobody is sure exactly what ripped her out of the world, but rumors talk about it having to do with Rose Quartz.

Whatever. Amethyst doesn't believe in that rumor stuff. If there _was_ any validity, the cops would've gotten involved.

The store itself has that usual frou-frou look to it, with a display case and a sign with frilly writing that reads, _"I_ do _Want the Dress!"_ but the walls are damp brick, giving it an essence of lies. Fitting.

The woman at the counter has a bit of a resemblance to Jasper, so she might be a distant cousin, but Amethyst doesn't recognize her. She's tall(ish) and stocky, with hair Princess Leia- may her soul find peace- would approve of. Her thick fingers flash across the keyboard at her little waiting desk area, plump lips drawn back a bit with concentration.

Amethyst cranes her head back to read the name tag. Holly Blue.

"Here you all are." She says finally. "My congratulations to the lucky, um, _ladies_. Will the boy go in with you or wait out here?"

"Hey!" Steven cries, as he hates to not answer for himself, but Holly studiously ignores him.

"He's getting fitted as well," Pearl informs her politely. "Amethyst has asked that she wear a suit, and we'd hate for a lovely dress to go to waste."

Holly's mouth dipped into a mildly concerned frown. "Excuse me?"

Garnet set a hand on Pearl's shoulder. She easily out-sized Holly, and her shades made her look positively dangerous to strangers. "The boy likes sparkles. It's not a complicated concept."

"F-fair enough." Holly answered quickly, turning back to her computer. "Skinny will bring your outfits out shortly. The second fitting room on the left."

"Thank you." She rumbled, bending down to pick Steven up. "Amethyst, you want to wait in the car?"

"What, and miss the mourning of style massacre? Never."

Amethyst picks a seat by the mannequins and waits. Holly seems to have forgotten she exists, which is fine. She focuses instead on what they have in stock, mildly affronted by the realization that their most pushed wares are too small for her to wear. Even Pearl might chafe under all that constricting lace.

The bell chimes, but Amethyst hardly pays attention until she hears the words, "Picking up for Bob. It's a long story."

 _Lapis._ It's impossible to forget that dull, bored way with which she talks to strangers, and, sure enough, when she looks up, it's her.

Lapis Lazuli had been a stage hand at one of the gigs Jasper's band played, and before the end of the week had ended they were dating. A fever of escape had eagerly wormed into her mind- a chance to get away from restrictive parents and boredom. Jasper must've seemed like a reckless angel, at the time; free, passionate, and always ready to go the extra mile.

Things had gone to smithereens, as they do in situations like this, from time to time. Amethyst was hopping into Vidalia's van (and pants, when Sour Cream was off doing something or other) so she isn't aware of all the details; only that it was brutal and messy.

And maybe that would've been the end of it, had Lapis gotten off at the next bus stop with a thorn in her heart, but where could she even _go_? She'd given up everything for Jasper, and that had fallen through in blazing fashion.

They degraded into fuck buddies- and not the good, nice kind, like between close friends. The mad, angry kind, that aren't healthy. From there Lapis and Jasper both did everything they could to piss the other off. Jasper got a bunch of piercings, knowing Lapis hated the look and feel of metal, and Lapis got sleeves and a back stamp, knowing that Jasper thought her clear, oak-colored skin was absolutely beautiful.

Eventually, Lapis got the strength to leave, and rebuilt herself from the ground up living in a little barn on the edge of nowhere, with Peridot as her roommate. Last Amethyst heard, she was raising her daughter alone and co-owning a dog with their mutual friend. Amethyst certainly didn't blame her for how things had gone between her and her sister; honestly, she'd kinda missed her company.

Still. As nice as Lapis is, she's not sure her being at the wedding will be good for anybody.

"It's not quite ready, I'm afraid."

"I'll wait."

Lapis turns, catches sight of Amethyst, and lets her face go perfectly blank. She's in a knee-length purple skirt and black dress shirt, purse slung over her shoulder. Amethyst can see the very edge of a wave peeking out of her right wrist.

Amethyst feels sweat beginning to slip down her back as she waves. "Hey, Lappy. You gonna mug me or hug me?"

"Neither." Lapis answers primly, sliding onto the cheaply furnished waiting bench. "You here for Jasper, or Peridot?"

"Both, I guess." Amethyst shrugged. She really doesn't know _what_ she's here for. Understanding? Reconciliation? A chance to egg that ratface superintendent's house and get drunk after? It's a bit of a blur.

"I'm here for Peridot." She says. "Jasper is none of my business."

"You worried?"

"That things will go for her like it did me? No."

"Oh. Well, that's a good sign."

Lapis ignores that sentiment. "Did you come alone?"

"Nah. Got me some college girls with me, _and_ my baby boy."

"Biological or adopted?"

"Sorta adopted? I'm his legal guardian, but I didn't pop 'im out or anything."

"Ah." She hums, dryly. "Yeah. Birth isn't an experience I would recommend."

"How's Mala?"

"Low self-esteem and big hands doth not equal a good time for bullies," She mused, then said; "She hates her skin."

"Aw. I thought her vitiligo was cute." Then again, it had been many years since they'd seen each other last, and she could only imagine how that little white dimple on her face and the splotch on her hand had spread. Didn't that stuff _itch_ , too? No wonder she was having issues. "Well, as cute as a skin disorder can be, anyway."

"The dress is finished!" Holly calls. In her arms is a bundle of pea green cloth.

Lapis nonchalantly stands. "Don't worry. I'm not here to ruin the wedding. If anybody does that, it'll be Jasper herself."

"Such faith."

"I don't see you arguing it."

Amethyst bites her lip and doesn't reply.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey ho I didn't actually forget this 'fic. I just kinda hit a road bump with the chapter. We might finally get some Jasper soon, I think. Maybe!

**Author's Note:**

> My own addition to the Human!AU pile


End file.
